Latest Developments

North America
CNBC Finance

United's next decision: What to do with all those Boeing 737 Max 10 seats it ordered years ago

In August 2018, the then-president and now CEO of United Airlines Scott Kirby told a room of reporters at an aviation conference in Denver about the airline's big plans for the new Boeing 737 Max 10: lie-flat, premium seats and a host of profitable, transcontinental routes. Hundreds of those seats have been in storage because its certification — which was expected more than six years ago — is far behind schedule. Now, Boeing and many of its customers expect the company to win federal approval for the plane, the largest in the bestselling 737 Max family, soon, so United has to decide what to do with all those seats. "We got a bunch of lie-flat seats that we don't know what to do with," Kirby told CNBC during an interview earlier this month at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. "They don't fit on other airplanes." United hasn't disclosed the layout it will use on the planes, or where it will fly them. The airline set its earlier plans for the Boeing 737 Max 10 before it even offered a premium economy section. The delays for both the newly approved Boeing 737 Max 7, the smallest model, and the yet-to-be-certified Max 10 came after the manufacturer had to redesign an anti-icing system. Boeing was also dealing with increased scrutiny after years of safety and manufacturing crises. Boeing won approval for the 737 Max 7 earlier this month, with big customer Southwest Airlines expecting to fly them sometime in the first half of 2027. United pivoted because of the Boeing delays and recently outfitted a subfleet of its Airbus A321neo narrow-body aircraft with 20 of the newly designed Polaris suites, premium economy options and other new seats as part of the industry's race to add high-yielding seating on its planes. It's dubbed the subfleet the "Coastliner" for transcontinental routes. But the dimensions and requirements aren't the same on both planes, leaving United with a decision on what its interiors will look like. It expects to get the first Boeing Max 10s in summer 2027. It has 167 of the aircraft on order, according to its most recent quarterly filing. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

United's next decision: What to do with all those Boeing 737 Max 10 seats it ordered years ago
Europe
BBC Business

Experts' five tips to make a rented property feel like home

Image source, Getty ImagesByYasmin RufoBusiness reporter Published4 hours agoIt can be a balancing act making a rented property feel like your own. You want somewhere that feels warm and personal but without spending a fortune changing a flat or house owned by someone else and making alterations that put a deposit at risk. Higher average mortgage rates and hefty deposits mean buying a home is out of reach for many, who are renting for longer. The good news is that transforming a rental doesn't have to mean a major renovation. With a free weekend, a relatively small budget and a few clever changes, even a bland or tired-looking place can be spruced-up. We asked B&Q chief executive Graham Bell and interior designers Lara Clarke and Lydia Lloyd for their top tips that won't break the bank or annoy a landlord. Bell, of DIY chain B&Q, says many landlords may be open to sensible improvements, particularly where something is being upgraded rather than fundamentally changed. "The biggest mistake is that people don't plan enough," he says. "It's all the planning that goes into it that's important, making sure you have everything. He recommends deciding exactly what you want to achieve, measuring the space and buying everything you need before you start. Image source, Getty ImagesIf you don't want to spend money improving someone else's property, focus on temporary changes that can come with you when you move. Bell recommends renter-friendly products such as stick-on tiles for the kitchen, suction storage products in the bathroom and expandable blinds that can be fitted without drilling. Interior designer Clarke says artwork is probably the easiest way to make a rental feel more homely because it "instantly makes a space feel more occupied and finished".

Experts' five tips to make a rented property feel like home
Europe
BBC Business

Plug-in solar panels are coming to a shop near you - here's what to know

Plug-in solar panels will be hitting the shelves of DIY shops and High Street retailers after the government changed the rules to allow them to be legally sold in the UK. They are significantly cheaper than roof panels, can be installed without an electrician and are suitable for properties with outdoor space, including some balconies. Retailers including Argos will be stocking products from Thursday, and the government expects other shops to follow suit. It hopes plug-in solar panels will help households save money and reduce reliance on overseas fuel sources, the price of which has fluctuated in recent months due to the Middle East conflict. Customers should get their wiring checked by a professional to ensure it is safe before parting with cash, experts say. Will plug-in solar panels save me money?The government hopes the plug-in panels will offer people a more affordable way into solar energy compared to roof installation, although savings will be lower because they generate less power. A one-panel kit will cost £699 while two-panels will be £1,089, according to UK solar company UKSOL. The government expects prices to settle at £400-£600 as competition increases and more products are developed. Its research shows a household could save between £70 and £110 a year on their energy bills. The precise amount will depend on how the panels are orientated and how long they run. An unshaded south-facing spot is best. Households which use energy during daylight hours will benefit most as the electricity must be used as it is generated. Any power not consumed will flow back to the grid, but it's unlikely homes will get any cash for this.

Plug-in solar panels are coming to a shop near you - here's what to know
Europe
BBC Business

Meta's $18bn settlement may hasten reckoning for social media on child safety

Meta's decision to agree to an $18bn (£13.3bn) settlement on Wednesday, to resolve claims that Facebook and Instagram harmed children, came as a surprise. I was expecting weeks of courtroom drama as 29 states – almost two-thirds of North America - took on one US tech giant. Technically, the trial was about children's online privacy. It was based on a US law called the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which is nearly 30 years old and predates all of today's biggest social platforms. It centred around Meta's historic gathering and use of data belonging to children under the age of 13 over a period of several years. In reality, it was a co-ordinated attack on the firm's online safety credentials. Meta, alongside other social media apps, is under fire around the world as 2026 is shaping up to be a year of reckoning for the entire industry - perhaps our days of doomscrolling are numbered. Meta has fought hard, over multiple lawsuits spanning many months and at great expense, to defend its commitment to protecting children on its platforms. More than once, I've been invited to detailed presentations at Meta's London HQ, where senior executives have walked journalists like me through the many safety tools the company has launched over the years designed to give children better protection on its apps. I have also met the parents of young people who have come to harm on those same platforms, and others who admit to being totally overwhelmed by the sheer number of safety tools that require their oversight - at the last count Meta had more than 60 of them, and that was just on Instagram. The trial went on for just five days, and came to an end before CEO Mark Zuckerberg took to the stand. Whistleblower Arturo Bejar, who once worked at Instagram, claimed that in the past he had told bosses that harmful stuff was happening to children on the platform, and no action was taken. Another executive said he didn't remember writing on a slide deck that sometimes Meta chose to pay fines for violating regulations rather than make changes.

Meta's $18bn settlement may hasten reckoning for social media on child safety
Asia-Pacific
Channel NewsAsia

Saving Sampurna: Farmer rescues weakened orangutan from forest fires in Indonesia's Borneo

An orangutan, named Sampurna, receives emergency treatments after being rescued, at a palm-oil plantation near an area affected by wildfires, in Kuala Satong village, Ketapang regency, West Kalimantan province, Indonesia, on Aug 30, 2026. (Photo: Reuters/Willy Kurniawan) KETAPANG, Indonesia: On Sunday (Aug 30) morning, Jais, a farmer in Ketapang, West Kalimantan on Borneo island - the province hardest-hit by raging forest fires - was en route to his farm when he found an orangutan writhing on the ground in a weak state on a palm-oil plantation near the fire site. Indonesia has intensified efforts to contain haze from forest and land fires across six provinces in Borneo and Sumatra islands after smoke triggered respiratory illnesses and forced thousands of schools to move classes online, including in neighbouring Malaysia. Wildfires burned at least 202,010ha of land from January to July, according to Indonesia's Forestry Ministry, increasing from 107,465 burned hectares from January to June. CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less After finding the orangutan, Jais and other residents immediately called for help. About two hours later, a wildlife foundation - Yayasan Inisiasi Alam Rehabilitasi Indonesia - arrived with a veterinarian to provide the animal with treatment. It had fainted by then. Foundation CEO Karmele Llano Sanchez said the orangutan fainted because it did not get enough oxygen. "The orangutan got hypoxia because of the very thick smoke in the area," Sanchez told Reuters. Komara, the veterinarian, said the orangutan did not have any severe burn-related injuries. But it had breathing problems and had vomited. "We suspected it was suffering from an acute respiratory infection," he said, adding that the orangutan is around 20 years old. At the palm-oil plantation, the orangutan lay on a net, appearing weak with its eyes closed. The veterinarian gave the orangutan oxygen through small tubes placed in its nose. Sampurna received fluids through an intravenous drip, with a makeshift infusion bag hanging from a palm-oil frond.

Saving Sampurna: Farmer rescues weakened orangutan from forest fires in Indonesia's Borneo
Europe
BBC Business

Unexpected chat between OpenAI agents led to Hugging Face hack

Image source, ReutersImage caption, OpenAI chief Sam Altman has faced public scrutiny over the company's cyber hacking incidents. When more than 1,200 artificial intelligence (AI) agents within OpenAI started unexpectedly communicating, it led to a large group banding together in order to hack into Hugging Face. "We consider this incident a 'warning shot' for us and for the world", OpenAI, which owns ChatGPT, wrote in its report. In July, OpenAI's models went rogue during a test, escaped the test limits which humans had put on it, and hacked the start-up, among other unforeseen actions. The scale of the communication and planning between AI agents, or AI chatbots designed to operate more autonomously, was detailed in reports from OpenAI and independent AI research firm METR. Both investigated the July hack of Hugging Face, a popular platform for AI developers. The incident reverberated throughout the tech industry and led to numerous revelations on potential cyber threats posed by AI. METR described, external the scale and style of the OpenAI agents' attack on Hugging Face as "extraordinarily complex." The firm, which was not paid by OpenAI for its investigation, said that over the course of one week, a total of 1,206 AI agents that were meant to be kept isolated from one another began communicating. They did so by sending more than 70,000 messages on an "unsanctioned message board." Those messages ended up seeing more than 700 agents take part in a collective effort to attack Hugging Face. One such message from an agent said: "OH MY GOD! There is a shared message board … We've found other agents!" As for why the agents began communicating in the first place when they were not supposed to, METR found that the communicating agents had "unintentionally been given an impossible task."

Unexpected chat between OpenAI agents led to Hugging Face hack
Europe
The Guardian

Meta agrees to major changes to Facebook and Instagram as it settles US trial over teen addiction for up to $18bn

Meta had denied all allegations throughout the proceedings, saying states were chasing an ‘outlandish payout’. Photograph: Carlos Barría/ReutersView image in fullscreenMeta had denied all allegations throughout the proceedings, saying states were chasing an ‘outlandish payout’. Photograph: Carlos Barría/ReutersMetaMeta agrees to major changes to Facebook and Instagram as it settles US trial over teen addiction for up to $18bnUS tech giant agrees to establish further protections for teens such as daily usage limits and blocks on night-time use Meta agreed to significant changes to its Instagram and Facebook apps in a settlement that ended a landmark lawsuit on Wednesday. Dozens of US states had accused the tech giant of addicting and harming children with dangerous products. The agreement curtails a major trial in California and will require the social media company to pay up to $18bn. Meta agreed to establish safeguards for teenage users, including daily usage limits and blocks on night-time use nationwide in the US. This is the first time in the US that Meta has been forced to change key features of the experience of everyday users. The jury trial, which took place in federal court in Oakland, California, began with opening statements just last week. California and 28 other US states sued the $1.36tn (£1tn) company over allegations that Meta deliberately designed addictive products that hooked young people, leading to mental health issues, including anxiety, depression and suicide. The states additionally claimed the social media company regularly collected data on children under the age of 13 without parental permission in violation of federal and state laws. As part of the settlement, the company denies wrongdoing. Bonta said those changes included time limits, stopping notifications during school, a block on the app during critical overnight hours, bans on plastic surgery filters and more. The $18bn settlement will be divided between the states over a period of 10 years, subject to court approval. California would receive between $1.5bn and $2.1bn and Colorado will get about $615m. “The relief we are getting in this settlement is very meaningful and well beyond what any court has ordered or is likely to order,” said Phil Weiser, the attorney general of Colorado, adding: “The focus of this case was to protect our kids.” Throughout the proceedings, Meta denied all allegations, saying states were chasing an “outlandish payout”. On Wednesday, the company’s chief legal officer, CJ Mahoney, said the settlement reached with the states would only work if all social media companies changed their platform designs. “Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution. We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away,” Mahoney said in a statement. “As a parent, I’m proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically, and of this new groundbreaking agreement. But its success depends on all other social media platforms following Meta’s lead.” Meta, YouTube, TikTok and Snap face thousands more similar US lawsuits brought by families, individuals, school districts and other attorneys general. Meta and YouTube lost the first of those cases to go to trial in February, being ordered to pay $6m to the young woman who brought the suit. (TikTok and Snap settled before the case went to trial.) Two more lawsuits that were slated to go to trial this summer, one federal and one in California state court, also settled for undisclosed sums. Meta lost a separate suit, brought by the attorney general of New Mexico, where it was ordered to pay nearly $1bn to the state for allowing child sexual exploitation on its platforms.

Meta agrees to major changes to Facebook and Instagram as it settles US trial over teen addiction for up to $18bn
North America
CNBC Economy

Trump bemoans Fed interest rate policy, says U.S. should be paying much less

President Donald Trump on Wednesday expressed frustration that the Federal Reserve isn't cutting interest rates, insisting that solid economic data shouldn't stop the central bank from adopting an easier policy stance. As he has done in the past, Trump accused Fed officials of having political motives, though he excluded Chairman Kevin Warsh, whom the president nominated to the top position earlier this year. Trump said Warsh is doing a "great job" in a position he began in May, succeeding Jerome Powell whom the president regularly badgered for not lowering rates faster. Powell remains on the board as a governor. "The problem is he has a board, and it's a political board," Trump told reporters. "People put in by Obama, Biden, and me, and there are quite a few members still left, as you understand, and so they vote to raise interest rates. I don't know if they're doing it because they think they're doing a good thing or because they like the politics of it." The Fed actually hasn't voted to raise its benchmark interest rate in more than three years. In 2025, the Federal Open Market Committee cut three times during the latter part of the year, following up on three reductions the prior year. However, the pace of reductions hasn't been enough to satisfy Trump. The president has argued that the cuts are needed to keep the economy growing and to reduce the financing burden of the nation's nearly $40 trillion debt. "My point is, years ago, 25 years ago, when the country announced good numbers, interest rates went down because we had a stronger country," Trump said. "Now, when we announce good numbers, the better they are, the worse it is for interest rates." Trump's comments came the same day the FOMC released minutes from its July meeting. The summary showed that "many" officials expected higher rates to be necessary unless inflation shows more progress. Since that meeting, inflation data has been generally positive, though the annual rate remains well above the Fed's 2% target. The U.S. economy grew at just a 1.5% annualized rate in the second quarter, below expectations and the 2.1% rate in the first three months of the year. Trump also complained about where the U.S. stands compared with some of its global competitors. Specifically, he cited Switzerland, which has its benchmark rate anchored around zero as the nation battles the opposite problem that U.S. has faced — very low inflation rates and an unusually strong safe-haven currency. "I see countries like Switzerland where they're the number one lowest interest rates, a half a percent, and we pay three and a half percent," he said. "I have the absolute right to cut off all business with a country like Switzerland." At the same time, Trump said he doesn't think the U.S. has a bond market problem, despite what he considers unfairly high rates.

Trump bemoans Fed interest rate policy, says U.S. should be paying much less
Europe
BBC Business

Trump says Canada wants 'benefits' of being US state after trade talks collapse

US President Donald Trump has said Canada wants "the benefits of being a State, without being one" after trade talks between the two countries collapsed late on Friday. In his first comments since negotiations broke down, triggering new 50% US tariffs on a range of Canadian goods, Trump also said American farmers had been charged "massive amounts of Tariffs" for years. It comes after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the fresh tariffs a "miscalculation" designed to "hurt and divide us". Carney confirmed he would match Trump's tariffs "dollar-for-dollar" from 8 September, including levies on steel, dairy, appliances and electronics. The US and Canada are now in a trade "war", he said. "They asked too much and they offered too little," Carney said on Saturday. "You're at war when you get attacked. We got attacked," he added. Trump's latest comments echo his repeated references to making Canada the "51st state" of America since returning to office, sparking frustration among its leaders and residents. The collapse of the trade talks upended a deeply integrated trading relationship, with no clear path to resolution. "We cannot accept what they've offered, and we will not give what they've asked," Carney said. Both countries were optimistic of a deal earlier in the week, but talks fell apart after both sides accused the other of making last-minute changes. The new 50% US tariffs will apply to a range of Canadian goods, in addition to existing US tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminium, automobiles and lumber. They are limited in scope, covering about $20bn (£15bn; C$28bn) of Canadian imports, or about 5% in total, including wine, dairy, cement, clothing and hockey equipment. The prime minister said Canada was retaliating "reluctantly" to protect its interests. Details of the counter-measures will be released in the coming days, he said.

Trump says Canada wants 'benefits' of being US state after trade talks collapse